Professor Isabel Smallegange has been appointed as the new Head of Biological Sciences at Royal Holloway. She brings extensive leadership experience with a focus on cultivating inclusive and high-performing research environments.
Her own research as a population biologist integrates developmental biology, behavioural ecology, and ecological modelling to understand how organisms shape and are shaped by their environments. Professor Smallegange's work combines theory, experiments, and ecological modelling across diverse systems, from model invertebrates to fishes and marine megafauna. She has pioneered frameworks linking energetics, developmental plasticity, and demography.
Professor Smallegange stated, “I’m delighted to be joining Royal Holloway and am very much looking forward to getting to know colleagues and students across Biological Sciences. The Department has tremendous breadth and expertise, and I’m excited about working with colleagues and students to build on those strengths and help shape the next phase of its development across research, education and engagement. I’m particularly looking forward to help sustain an inclusive and collaborative environment in which people and ideas can flourish.”
Her research addresses fundamental questions about life-history evolution and population resilience, while also informing biodiversity conservation and responses to environmental change. She also leads interdisciplinary collaborations spanning ecology, evolution, behavioural science, philosophy, and conservation.
Prior to this appointment, Professor Smallegange held positions at Newcastle University, the University of Amsterdam, Imperial College London, Oxford University, and the Max Planck Institute.
